Magic Casement (45 page)

“That
is not sufficient!” But she was too shrill, and she had almost stamped
her foot.

Foronod
was not intimidated by juvenile females. “It will have to do for now,
miss. I shall inform the soldiers that their leader is dead. I expect they will
wish to take suitable action. “

Rap!
He had tried to help her, and Inos would have to defend him somehow. She took a
deep breath and forced herself to speak calmly. “You will do no such
thing!”

Foronod’s
bony face was well suited for registering disdain. He paused with the door
already open. “Indeed? And what do I say when I am asked where the
proconsul is?”

Now
there was a very good question! Inos looked at Rap, who shrugged; at Mother
Unonini, who frowned; even at the goblin, who scratched his disgustingly bare
chest and grinned all over his ugly, bristled face.

Aunt
Kade sighed resignedly. “Tell them he is in conference in the queen’s
bedroom and must not be disturbed.”

That
suggestion was greeted with shock and silent outrage. “What is this tale
of Thane Kalkor?” Inos inquired.

The
factor smiled, thin-lipped. “He has been informed of the situation. We
expect him as soon as the pack ice clears the shore. How many men he is
bringing I am not sure, but I expect they will suffice. A ratio of one jotunn
to four imps is usually ample.”

She
noted the scowls on the faces of the imps present, a few grins from the other
jotnar. But the door was still open and she must buy time to think before they
all started pouring down the stairs and everything got out of hand.

Not
that things were very well in hand at the moment. “Kalkor is coming at
your invitation?”

“An
invitation of which I was one signatory, miss. Jotnar will not accept rule by a
woman. “

Half
the population of Krasnegar were jotnar.

“That
may be the law in Nordland, but there is no such law here. Chancellor Yaltauri,
how do you feel about this treason?”

“You
needn’t appeal to him,” Foronod said. “Months ago he sent off
a letter to the imperor, petitioning for a protectorate status.”

Inos
wavered on the edge of despair. What use now was Kinvale? What use dancing and
elocution and scales on the spinnet? What use embroidery and sketching? Why had
her father not taught her some statecraft while there was still time-given her
fencing lessons, even, or explained politics and what made men act like beasts?

Somehow
she managed to step back from the abyss. “Very well!” she said. “You
may withdraw, but you will not mention the proconsul unless you are asked. In
that case you may follow my aunt’s recommendation, and I shall worry
later about my reputation. All those of you willing to accept me as your
rightful queen please remain behind. The rest of you may leave.”

Then
she stood there and watched her hopes dribble out the door, one by one, defiant
or apologetic or shamefaced. The last one to go was Mother Unonini, who stood
by the door and hesitated.

“I
offer you a blessing, child.”

“If
you were a loyal friend you would not be leaving,” Inos replied
waspishly. “If you are leaving I don’t want it.”

The
door thanked closed.

Inos
stalked across in a most unregal fashion and slammed the bolt. Then she turned
to survey the wreckage of the room, chairs awry or shattered, one rug bejeweled
with smashed china and a sea of tea stain, another a charred mess stinking of
burned oil, another bearing a prostrate giant in shredded green garments,
glaring death wishes at her. The fire had gone out and many of the candles,
also. The stench of burning hung in the shadows, and the place looked like the
aftermath of a riotous party. She wondered what the time was-it felt like the
small hours of tomorrow.

Kade
and a goblin... and Rap.

“I
seem to have inherited a very small kingdom,” she said bitterly.

Still
standing guard over the prisoner, looking absurd in his tattoos, Rap sent her a
very faint, wry little smile. “Then I can be master-of-horse and
sergeant-at-arms both?”

“Oh,
Rap! “ He thought he had been helpful, and certainly he had meant well,
but he had cost her any chance she might have had of winning her kingdom. By
exposing Andor he had made her seem a fool and had also made the members of the
council feel duped. They all resented that and they were blaming her. Obviously
in their eyes she was not fit to be a queen. Without their support she had
nothing. Had Rap not intervened, she would have been married to Andor by now
and in a better position to face down the terrible Kalkor.

Or
perhaps she would have been Yggingi’s prisoner.

Or
wedded to that horrid Darad ogre, also? She shuddered. So Rap had helped and
apparently he was the only one loyal to her. At the same time as she wanted to
scream at him, she also wanted to run and hug him.

And
for a moment their eyes passed that message. But it would not be fair. They
were not children anymore. Don’t smile too much at the servants, her aunt
had taught her. She managed to walk over to him calmly, and she took his hands
in hers. Big, strong hands. Man’s hands. “Thank you, Rap! I am
sorry I ever doubted you. I was horrid to you in the forest-”

“It
was Andor did that! He made me steal horses, too!”

“Well,
I’m very grateful for all your help and your loyalty. “ For a
moment he just stood there, staring dumbly at her, and she actually saw the
shiny gems of perspiration appear on his forehead. Then he blushed scarlet and
looked down at his feet. “My dutv, Majesty.”

So
the danger was past. Oh, poor Rap!

“The
first thing we have to do is to think how to get you out of here,” she
said. “You hid in the top chamber, I suppose? Rap, I do so want to hear
how you worked all these miracles! But first we must get you to a safe place. “

“There
isn’t one,” he said somberly. “That bolt won’t stop a
couple of thousand imps, and they’ll be coming soon. I’d better
just turn us in, me and Little Chicken. If they put off the execution until the
jotnar get here, then Kalkor may pardon us. Maybe. “

Inos
clenched her fists. “There has to be a better idea than that! Aunt Kade? “

“I
don’t know, dear.” Her aunt was leaning back on the sofa, looking
old and bedraggled and utterly weary. “I managed to ruin your reputation,
but I think I agree with Master Rap-it won’t hold for very long.”

“Rap,
who is Little Chicken? A friend?”

“He’s
my slave.” Rap was turning pink again. “And he won’t let me
free him. “

Slave?
Torture? “How did you... Why not, for Gods’ sake?” Rap had
never been much of a man for smiles, but once in a while he had been known to
indulge a sort of shy grin, and momentarily that showed now. Strangely she
discovered that it was the most welcome thing she had seen all day.

“Because
he wants to kill me. It’s quite a complicated story.”

“It
must be! “ But it would have to wait. Inos looked down at the prisoner,
Darad. Had she been going to marry this? She shuddered again. “And this
horror is Andor?”

“I
don’t know. He changes into Andor, or Andor into him. And I think they’re
Sagorn and Jalon the minstrel, too.”

“Sagorn?”
she said. “That must be what Father meant! He said I could trust Sagorn,
but not the others, except maybe Thinal. Who’s Thinal?”

Rap
looked surprised. “No idea. But we can try to call up Sagorn, if you
think we can trust him. I’m frightened of this monster getting loose.”

“How
can you do that?”

“Let’s
find out.” Rap dropped on one knee and said politely to Darad, “Please
will you turn into Doctor Sagorn?”

The
absurdity of the request made Inos want to giggle, and she must not start down
that slippery slope. The giant’s ruined face twisted in anger. He growled
an obscenity and strained against his bonds and the goblin’s weight. He
was obviously in pain, sweat mingling with the blood on his forehead.

Rap
smirked meanly at him. “I shall let Little Chicken try to persuade you,
then. That would be fair, wouldn’t it? After all, you introduced us.”

Little
Chicken, still sitting on the man’s chest, started to grin again,
obviously understanding at least some of the talk.

“You
wouldn’t!” Darad growled from the floor. “I would!” Rap
said.

Little
Chicken was certainly following the conversation. With no further ado, he
coldbloodedly poked a finger in Darad’s eye. He howled. “Tell him
to get off, then!”

Rap
motioned for the goblin to rise. He stood up, and the man on the floor was
Sagorn.

Little
Chicken hissed loudly and jumped back. Rap said, “Gods! That’s
quite a trick, isn’t it?” Again Inos remembered the ladies in the
romances who went mad with grief, she wondered how many of them could have had
this much fun first.

“Doctor
Sagorn! “ Aunt Kade beamed, and Inos half expected her to add, How nice
that you can join us.

The
old man smiled up at them bitterly. “If you trust me, then you won’t
mind if I remove these bonds?” Despite his undignified position, his
sparse white hair was tidy, and he seemed calm and composed. He slipped his
wrists free easily, for the tethers had been fitted to Darad’s mightier
limbs.

Rap
cut his ankles free, also, and then helped him to rise. “Let’s see
if we can find something better for you to wear, sir. “ Darad’s
huge body had ripped Andor’s garments open, and the shreds were barely
decent on Sagorn. They were also soaked in tea and blood. Rap turned to Little
Chicken and spoke in goblin. The reply was brief.

“What
did he say?” Inos asked.

Rap
sighed. “He told me to get it myself. He has very exact ideas of a slave’s
duties.”

So
Rap ran upstairs and came down with a brown woolen robe. Fleabag, now released,
indulged himself in a tour of the room, sniffing vigorously and cleaning up the
remains of the food.

The
lanky old man stepped into the stairwell for a moment and returned wearing the
gown, his dignity restored. He bowed to Aunt Kade and then to Inos. She
remembered how he had terrified her at their first meeting, but the glittery
eyes and eagle nose held no threat for her now, although she had just witnessed
a very obvious sorcery. She wondered if that was because she was older, or
whether she was just numb from the daylong battering.

“My
sympathies, ma’am,” he said. “Your father was a good friend
to me in years past, and I grieve his sad end. I did everything within my
skill. “

She
nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

Sagorn
made himself comfortable on a chair next to Kade’s sofa and everyone else
sat down, also, with Little Chicken crosslegged on the floor, scowling deeply
as he struggled to follow the impish tongue.

“You
will want an explanation, I suppose?” the old man asked. “Please,”
Inos said. “That was an unconventional entrance.” He smiled his
thin-ripped grimace at her for a moment. “You are no longer the young
lady who panicked at the mention of yellow dragons. Kinvale has done wonders
for you. Can Andor claim some of the credit, I wonder?”

He
was seeking to dominate her. “The explanation, please?”

“Very
well.” He turned to Rap. “Your guess was remarkably close, young
man. There are five of us-myself, Andor, Jalon, Darad, and Thinal, whom you
have not met. Many, many years ago, we together gave cause for annoyance to a
powerful sorcerer. He placed a spell on us, a curse. Only one of us can exist
at a time. That is the whole of the matter.”

“But
you are different persons?” Rap had always frowned ferociously when
thinking hard.

“Quite
different. Andor and Thinal were brothers, the rest of us merely friends. We
have never met since that terrible evening long ago. We share a single
existence and we also share the same memories. How did you escape from the
goblins, by the way?”

Rap
did not answer that. “A very convenient curse! You appear and disappear
at will-”

“No!
A terrible curse!” Sagorn glared. “We have been seeking release
from it for longer than you would believe. Take Darad, for example. Would you
like to be burdened with that man’s memories? Murder and rape? He is a
mad dog, crueler than a goblin. And we do not come and go at will, only when
called. None of the rest of us likes to call Darad, so it may be years before
he exists again-but when he does appear, he will still have a burned back and a
cracked head and a sore eye and a ripped arm. I hope none of you is within his
reach at that moment. “

“And
of course he will not be bound?”

“Not
unless whoever calls him is bound.” They all thought about that for a
moment.

“Father
said I could trust you,” Inos said, “or sometimes Thinal. Who is
Thinal?”

“Thinal?
He was our leader.” The old man stretched his bloodless lips in a smile. “Yes,
he is trustworthy after a fashion, as long as you have nothing precious
around-like a ruby brooch, for example. “

“He
stole my brooch?”

“He
can climb a blank wall like a fly. He also lifted the hostler’s keys off
his belt for Andor. He will oblige in such matters, but he will also steal for
sport. As well as being light-fingered, he has a peculiar taste in practical
jokes, but he does have a personal rule that he will always call back the one
who called him, and we trust him in that sense. I can call any of the others at
any time, but I have no control over what that one may do then, or whom he will
call next. “

“I
find this idea rather confusing, Doctor.” Aunt Kade could always be
relied on for a massive understatement when needed.

“Tell
us how you came and went. My brother sent for you last summer?”

He
spoke more respectfully to her, gazing blandly across the debris and ruin. “He
did, ma’am, and it was Jalon who received the message. He decided to
answer the call and caught a ship for Krasnegar. That was a remarkable success
for Jalon-in the past he has been known to take the wrong boat because he
thought it had a prettier name. But he managed to reach Krasnegar, went to the
king, and called me. “